Martin cohen and robert steer8 are nothing if not patient. Sitting side by side in Steers' Midtown Manhattan office, the co-founders of Cohen & Steers take turns explaining how their firm was at least seven years too early when it began peddling publicly traded real estate investment trusts in the 1980s. "You can't affect when investment tastes change," says the white-haired and patrician Steers. "So we said, 'Let's put our heads down and just keep cranking out the best record we can.When the world decides they like what we do, we'll be the only horse out there in the race, and assets will come.'" The two old friends have concentrated on the REIT market through its ups and downs, becoming industry leaders while other asset managers raced to offer everything from equities and bonds to alternative investments. Steers accuses the investment business of mediocrity, citing active managers' failure to outpace their benchmarks. "Diversification is a formula for failure," says the 59-year-old, who works across the hall from Cohen, 64.
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